Mon., April 12: Becoming a Spider Instead of Just a Bee

Google Demo #5: Google Alerts

Introduction to Google Alerts
By the end of class today, you will set up one or more Google Alerts for your topic
But you are not just researching your technology trend anymore, you are now focusing on how it relates to your NetGen norm and how it will impact education in the future
You want to create Google Alerts that will help you answer your team's Essential Question(s)
So to get exactly the kind of results you need in your Google Alert, you first need to experiment with some different search queries . . .

Mini-Lesson: Boolean Operators - AND, OR, & NOT

Stand up if you . . .

Boolean Operator Demo

Using Google or Boolify (Thank you for helping Ms. Moorman with her research study)

Time to Experiment

Try out different search queries and keep a record of the number and types of results you are getting back
Keep refining your search until you come up with results that are "spot on" to your exact research topic

Build Your Web

Use your refined search queries to create Google Alerts and feed them to your iGoogle Page or Google Reader

Wed., April 14: There's More Than One Way to Spin Your Web

Mini-Lesson: Review of Boolean operators using Venn diagrams

Color in the 3 different Venn diagrams to represent what results you will get if you search for . . .
x AND y
x OR y
x NOT y

Watch Parisian Love and Cookie Monster Search Stories

for Background/Context on Google Search Stories
You can make your own Search Story using this Google Search Stories Video Creator

Search Story by Zane T. Rushing - Yay, Zane!

Discussion: If the moral of Zane's search story is not to use too many specific search terms, why are we using so many specific search terms in our Google Alerts?
What's the difference between searching for the url of a site you already know exists versus creating a search query for a Google Alert to find new items you haven't discovered yet?

Google Demo #6: Making Information Come to You

Examples/Options for Feed Subscriptions

"Start Page" examples: Pageflakes , Netvibes , iGoogle
"Feed Reader" examples: Bloglines, Google Reader

Here is the Class Monitoring Portal for the NetGenEd Project

Here is an RSS feed of the NetGenEd Project on Twitter

Task #1 - Learn how to subscribe to RSS feeds

Create your own "start page" (such as iGoogle) or "feed reader" (such as Google Reader)
You are looking for a button that looks like this
Or maybe like this (click to expand)

Practice subscribing to the New York Times Technology section - can you find the RSS button, what do you do next?

Task #2 - Create your Personal Learning Network

This will be an iGoogle (or Netvibes or Pageflakes or Google Reader) page with the following RSS feeds:

On the NetGenEd Wiki

• Your main topic wiki - page edits (under "Notify Me" tab at the top)
• Your main topic wiki - discussion (under "Notify Me" tab at the top)
• Your team wiki - page edits (under "Notify Me" tab at the top)
• Your team wiki - discussion (under "Notify Me" tab at the top)

On the Grown Up Digital Ning

• Your teachers' blogs on the Ning
• Your Ning group(s) discussion(s)
• Your PM's blog on the Ning (If you haven't "friended" your project manager yet, find out who they are on the NetGenEd 2010 Team Matrix)
• Your APM's blog on the Ning (If you haven't "friended" your assistant project manager yet, find out who they are on the NetGenEd 2010 Team Matrix)

On the NetGenEd Diigo Group

• The standard tag for your technology on in the NetGenEd group on Diigo
• The tag for your Net Gen characteristic on Diigo (if it exists - if not, you will want to add this later)

In your Google Alerts

• Google Alert(s) for news
• Google Alert(s) for blogs

Other

• At least one other RSS feed particular to your research
• Any other sources you'd like to subscribe to for your research

If you use iGoogle, your Personal Learning Network will look something like this

Fri., April 16: Thinking Globally about the NetGenEd Project

1. Watch the welcome message from Don Tapscott
2. Respond to his message, his question about National Volunteer Week or something else in the Grown Up Digital Forum or add a new discussion to the forum
Here's an opportunity to possibly get published in School Talk - a national newsletter from NCTE - this would look great on your resume!
Here's an interesting discussion on Closing the Gap started by ISA student Jakob K

3. Watch the NetGenEd Student Keynote
4. Think about the 6 Essential Questions posted below the student keynote and add your thoughts to the discussion
Reply to at least 2 of the comments that are already there
You might try something like . . .

• I agree with you because . . .
• Another example of this is . . .
• That's true, but I also wonder/think . . .
• Interesting point, what do you think about . . . ?

Add an additional comment to the discussion as a whole if you'd like

5. Read some of the blogs written by NetGenEd-ers on the Grown Up Digital Ning
Many of them are about the 8 NetGen norms and about how technology will impact education
Add thoughtful, substantive comments to at least one blog post
See if you can add something to one of your teammates blogs

6. Write your own blog post about anything related to this project so far, for example . . .
What you've been learning from your research
What you think about the different Web 2.0 tools (wiki, Ning, Diigo, iGoogle/Reader) and/or skills (hyperlinking, Google search strategies, tagging, RSS feeds) we've been learning - how are they helping you with this project and beyond?
What you're thinking about the project as a whole - the topics, questions, teams, anything
Be sure to use standard English, add proper hyperlinks, and tag your blog with isa, netgened2010, and other relevant tags

7. Check your iGoogle page or Google Reader to see what else has been happening in the project
8. Follow a couple of the links in your Google Alerts and tag/save/share them to the NetGenEd group using Diigo
If you're not getting the results you want in your Google Alert, adjust your search terms

9. Add content to your Team page on the NetGenEd wiki under the essential question or other subheadings
New requirement: please put a note in the discussion section of the wiki every time you add to or edit the page
10. Participate in or start a discussion about your essential question/research topic using the Discussion tab on your Team page
Because not all students in the project are able to be on the Ning, research discussions should be on the wiki, not the Ning